What if you had the potential to experience two lives, but neither of them was particularly exciting? That’s the question Drake Doremus’ alternate-reality romance asks, even if it arrives at its conclusion inadvertently.
The biggest issue, really, is that it’s clear from the first which reality he wants Ivy (“Game of Thrones”‘ Emilia Clarke) to choose. Behind Door No. 1 is Noah (Jack Farthing, “Poldark”), a Hugh Grant manqué who is not only her boss in a cold corporate tower, but cheated on her and now realizes he wants her back. And behind Door No. 2? Well, therein waits soulful singer Diego (Édgar Ramírez), who pushes Ivy to pursue her own musical dreams in smoky jazz clubs.
Doremus, who both wrote and directed, cuts back and forth between these timelines; in one, Ivy and Noah build a generically corporate business, cook nice dinners in their sleek London flat, and work hard to start a family. In the other, Ivy and Diego sprawl across his artsy loft, bond with his beautiful kids and sing together as often as possible.
The choice is obvious, right?
Well, it should be, but the actors didn’t get the message. Ramírez, a two-time Emmy nominee (for “Carlos” and “American Crime Story”) is certainly talented enough to sell this slight story. But he seems hesitant here, a little stiff and too detached to build the electric chemistry required for a who-should-she-choose structure.
Farthing, on the other hand, is unexpectedly disarming. We’re set up to hate Noah, but when he tells Ivy he’s fully committed, and he supports her dreams, he truly seems to mean it. He looks like a villain and sounds like a second choice, but Farthing works much harder to create the bond any romantic heroine requires.
Which, of course, brings us to said heroine. Clarke is winning in both scenarios, but really no different in either. And this makes for an interesting dilemma.
Doremus has stacked the deck so strongly that he’s basically just pushing us away from one door towards the other. Cinematographer Marianne Bakke and composer Dan Romer follow suit, bringing an extra warmth to Ivy’s romance with Diego.
Sometimes, though, things don’t turn out quite as we expect. And despite everyone’s efforts, it’s possible that Ivy — sweet, lovely, and still searching for something she doesn’t actually find — may in fact be best off in another life altogether: looking for Door No. 3.
